Sunday, June 04, 2006

Commenting on Other Blogs

I haven't been quite as productive here as I'd like to be - my goal is to post at least once a day, with the pieces ranging from analytical essays to quick observations. Of course, "the world is too much with us, late and soon," and I fail to meet even this modest goal. Sigh.

One of my excuses is that I have been carrying the fight to the opposition. For some reason, I feel compelled to regularly comment on a few of the right wing bloggers. When they post something that strikes me as shallow, or irrational, I feel like it is better to go ahead and counter the post right there so that their readers will be exposed to a different view.

I kind of admire the right wing blogs that allow my comments. Many on the right don't allow comments at all, which, IMHO, demonstrates an authoritarian fear of questioning that undercuts their credibility. No commenting, however, is better than the most dishonest bloggers, who will actually edit comment threads to put themselves in a better position, and who are quick to ban contrarian voices. Matt Margolis banned me from his blogs because I provided a link which disproved his claim that the New York Times has ignored a story. Comments are the sunshine of blog discourse.

Engaging in comment exchanges is actually a lot of fun, but time-consuming. As the inimitable Xavier Onassis has observed, it can interfere with your own blogging, and common househild chores. I'm hoping the coming weeks allow a little more balance.

Anonymous Me, Travelingal, and other commenters from across the political spectrum - thank you for taking the time to provide your input. You make this blog a far better place to visit.

Like, XO, am also frightened of the direction in which this country is being led, but why do we see that direction so differently? What experiences led us to our conclusions? I like learning how and why. I also like tulips. :-)